Tigard Public Library earns high marks in annual survey

The Tigard Public Library received glowing praise from 3,100 patrons who took an annual survey last month.

Consider: On questions asking for open-ended responses, the most commonly used phrases were "great library," "staff," "books" and "love," according to the library. Four of the library's core services -- availability of computers, plus the checkout desk, reference desk and children's room desk -- were all rated excellent or good by more than 96 percent of respondents who said they use them.

Survey respondents viewed providing books and materials for adults, children and teens as the most important functions of the library. Lower on the list were classes and programs, Internet access and the library's role as a gathering place, according to the survey.

The survey did highlight one area that needs improvement, according to the library. It listed nine online resources to gauge feedback on how frequently used they are. Almost three-quarters of respondents said they hadn't used any of them.

"This response tells us that we need to do a better job of publicizing these research tools," Library Director Margaret Barnes said in a released statement.

More than half the survey respondents identified themselves as frequent visitors of the library -- more than four times per month. More than half also identified themselves as at least 41 years old.